marker_lamp_fall_11

The ■--
t Marker

Lamp

Volume 57

Number 4

Fall 2011

Craig Brantley’s On3 D&RGW Spring Division just one of the great layouts
that will be open for the Gulf Coast Linked in Houston 2012

The

Gulf Coast Limited
Houston

June 6-10
2012

In This Issue

President’s Message

3

Dog Ate My Homework

4

Gulf Coast Limited

4

Arthur Penny 1936-2011

7

Lubbock in photos

8

String Diagrams using Excel

9

Pass Exchange

11

Company Store

11

Narrow Minded

12

Up The Track

14

Secretary/Treasurer’s Report

15

Directors’ Reports

15

The Marker Lamp

The Official Publication of
The Lone Star Region of The
National Model
Railroad Association

Volume 57, Number 4

EDITOR
CHUCK LIND

507 Kyle Avenue
College Station, Texas 77840
(979) 219-3305

E-mail: chucklind46@gmail.com

ADVERTISING &
MAILING LIST
TOM BROWNING, MMR

5923 Overdowns Circle
Dallas, Texas 75230-4039
(214) 692-9784

E-mail: thomascb2004@sbcglobal.net

Visit the LSR’s web page at:

www.lonestarregion.com

The editorial policy of The
Marker Lamp, the official publication
of The Lone Star Region, shall be to
contribute, wherever possible, to the pro-
motion, growth and understanding of the
hobby of Model Railroading, within the
confines of good taste and responsibil-
ity.

The Marker Lamp is published once
each quarter by and for the members of
The Lone Star Region of The National
Model Railroad Association.

Articles appearing in The Marker
Lamp are the opinions of the authors
and do not necessarily reflect the posi-
tion or policies of the officers or mem-
bership of The Lone Star Region or
The National Model Railroad Asso-
ciation.

Address all correspondence, news,
photos and drawings to the editor. All
material will be gladly accepted and will
be used depending on the availability of
space and suitability of material. None
will be returned unless a stamped, self-
addressed envelope is provided.

Correspondence relating to Pike Ads,
Dealer Ads, Address Changes and re-
quests for extra copies should be ad-
dressed to Tom Browning, MMR
5923 Overdowns Circle
Dallas, Texas 75230-4039
(214) 692-9784

Submission Deadlines &

Advertising Closing Dates

Winter Issue January 15

Spring Issue April 15

Summer Issue July 15

Fall Issue October 15

Mailing Date:

Approx. 30 Days After Deadline.

Materials received after the deadline
will be held for the next issue un-
less the author requests otherwise.

Lone Star Region Call Board

LSR Officers

PRESIDENT
BILL MCPHERSON

4402 Vista Creek Drive
Rowlett, Texas 75088-1818
(972) 463-9721
E-mail: tpbill@attglobal.net

BOARD ADVISOR

GERALD SCHOENBERG, MMR

1039 Clinton Street
Carrollton, Texas 75007-4828
(972) 242-9053
E-mail: arrjerry@aol.com

DIRECTOR-AT-LARGE
DUANE RICHARDSON, MMR

1122 Holland Drive
Garland, Texas 75040
(972) 495-6375 E-mail:
duane@purgatoryanddevilriver.com

COWCATCHER DIVISION (1)
CHRIS ATKINS

1633 Parkside Trail
Lewisville, Texas 75077
(214) 222-1285

E-mail: chris@railroadermodelers.com

CEN-TEX DIVISION (4)
JACK MERKEL

2408 Whitewater Dr.
Bertram, Texas 78605
(512) 355-3289
E-mail: ElmerMerk@aol.com

DIVISION (7)

DON P. KIMMELL

9132 Mansfield Road
Shreveport, Louisiana 71118
(318) 798-7718
E-mail: elf4kcs@mac.com

ACHIEVEMENT PROGRAM
AL BOOS, MMR

130 Surrey Lane
Universal City, Texas 78148
(210) 658-4548

E-mail: AandVBoos3@aol.com

CONVENTION
BILL MCPHERSON

4402 Vista Creek Drive
Rowlett, Texas 75088-1818
(972) 463-9721
E-mail: tpbill@attglobal.net

EVENTS
BILL DRYDEN

1411 Briar Hill Drive
Georgetown, Texas 78626
(469) 964-8571
E-mail: bdrl49@airmail.net

MEMBERSHIP CO-CHAIRMAN
LARRY SWIGERT

6548 Clearhaven Circle
Dallas, Texas 75248
(972) 239-0909
E-mail: LS4Results@aol.com

MEMBERSHIP CO-CHAIRMAN
MIKE JOBE

418 Houston Street
Royse City, Texas 75189
(972) 635-9501

E-mail: michaeljobe@hotmail.com

VICE-PRESIDENT
BOB BARNETT

2925 Plumb Street
Houston, Texas 77005
(713) 660'8820
E-mail:rbarnett@hrgreen.com

DIRECTOR-AT-LARGE
TRACY MITCHELL, MMR

12018 Troulon

Houston, Texas 77072-4032

(281) 495-1669

E-mail: traymit@comcast.net

BAYOU DIVISION (2)

DICK SCHNEIDER

418 Crossbow Drive
New Iberia, Louisiana 70563
(337) 364-6931
E-mail: trains42@aol.com

DIVISION (5)

DAVE LAMBERTS

3717 95th Street
Lubbock, Texas 79423-3811
(806) 792-7244

E-mail: DavidWL1944@aol.com

TEXAS GULF DIVISION (8)
RAY BYER

2607 Thomas Avenue
Pasadena, Texas 77506-2940
(713) 472-4599
E-mail: raybyer@yahoo.com

PUBLICATIONS/EDITOR
CHUCK LIND, MMR

507 Kyle Avenue
College Station, Texas 77840
(979) 219-3305

E-mail:chucklind46@gmail.com

HISTORIAN
JIM LONG, MMR

2404 Creek Ridge
Pearland, Texas 77581-5728
(281) 482-4987
E-mail: (none)

WEB SITE

DUANE RICHARDSON, MMR

1122 Holland Drive

Garland, Texas 75040

(972) 495-6375 E-mail:

duane@purgatoryanddevilriver.com

EDUCATIONAL CHAIR
TRACY MITCHELL, MMR

12018 Troulon

Houston, Texas 77072-4032

(281) 495-1669

E-mail: traymit@comcast.net

NON-RAIL
VIRGINIA FREITAG

1835 Alta Vista
Houston, Texas 77023-2503
(713) 926-2993

E-mail: v-gtreitag@comcast.net

SECRETARY-TREASURER
TOM BROWNING, MMR

5923 Overdowns Circle
Dallas, Texas 75230-4039
(214) 692-9784

E-mail: thomascb2004@sbcglobal.net

SECRETARY-EMERITUS
EUNICE LINDA

3028 Cumberland
Waco, Texas 76707-1219
(254) 754-5535
E-mail: jlinda@hot.rr.com

DIRECTOR-AT-LARGE
CHUCK LIND, MMR

507 Kyle Avenue
College Station, Texas 77840
(979) 219-3305

E-mail: chucklind46@gmail.com

TRINITY RIVER DIVISION (3)
JERRY HOVERSON, MMR

1900 Spring Blossom Ct.
McKinney, Texas 75070
(972) 540-5315
E-mail: jhoverson@tx.rr.com

DIVISION (6)

TOM CROSTHWAIT

5922 Forest Ledge
San Antonio, Texas 78240
(210) 647-3261

E-mail: t.crosthwait@sbcglobal.net

CONTEST

DUANE RICHARDSON, MMR

1122 Holland Drive
Garland, Texas 75040
(972) 495-6375 E-mail:

duane@purgatoryanddevilriver.com

DISPATCHER N/HO-SCALE
CARS

MATTHEW LATHAM

2320 Hickory Leaf Lane
Flower Mound, Texas 75022-4945
(972) 358-6168

E-mail: wnrailway@yahoo.com

NOMINATIONS
GARY MCMILLS

649 Broadmoor Ave.

Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70815

(225) 810-3386

E-mail: santafe@tlxnet.net

PHOTOGRAPHY CHAIR
DAVE LAMBERTS

3717 95th Street
Lubbock, Texas 79423-3811
(806) 792-7244

E-mail: DavidWL1944@aol.com

YOUTH/PARLIAMENTARIAN
Bob Mangrum, PhD

112 Broken Arrow St.

Early, Texas 76802-2531

(325) 643-1219

E-mail: rmangrum@hputx.edu

LSR Directors- At-Large

LSR Division Directors

LSR Chairs

Page 2

The Marker Lamp

President’s

Message

by Bill McPherson

After such an unbearably hot summer, it will be exhilarating
to hit the road to the wide variety of railroad activities
throughout the Lone Star Region. Take a look at the “Up The
Track” articles by Bill Dryden in every issue of The Marker
Tamp for updated lists of the numerous activities. From
October through January there will be 30 different events
including train shows, historical societies’ events, live steam
meets, train rides, and operating sessions. . .something for
everyone.

In Houston several weeks ago Tom Browning and 1
attended an excellent clinic on decaling put on by that Master
of Everything, Tracy Mitchell. We then participated in a
planning meeting for the 2012 Gulf Coast Limited LSR
Convention to be held in Houston from June 6 to 10. Bob
Barnett, convention chairman, already has his convention
assistants hard at work on the details of this 2012 convention. 1
distributed copies of my newly revised LSR Convention
Responsibilities which have been expanded to provide
considerably more details on planning and implementing the
critical elements of a convention. Houston is very fortunate to
have a large number of enthusiastic, talented model railroaders
who are rich in experience in putting on excellent LSR
conventions, train shows, and layout tours.

Elsewhere in this The Marker Tamp are several articles
describing many exciting activities for this 2012 LSR convention
that will make it outstanding. The Houston area has one of the
largest concentrations of industries in the world that use railroads
extensively. This provides the convention attendees many more
opportunities to see the prototypes. The convention website
will be active soon as a link from the LSR website. In the
winter issue of The Marker Tamp (which you should receive
around February 1) a registration form and many more enticing
articles will be featured. Make your plans now to attend the
Gulf Coast Limited.

At the monthly Division 3 meetings Director Jerry
Hoverson and his crew are putting on a BIG “moment in the
sun” production to recognize a division member who has
earned an achievement certificate or a Golden Spike award.
This recognition is so significant to the recipient because
everyone appreciates being recognized for his efforts.

Aren’t you lucky to be involved in the World’s Greatest
Hobby as a member of the outstanding Lone Star Region!

View from the Spar Pole

By Chuck land, MMK

The ceiling is all fixed and just when we thought things
were getting back to normal I received a call while in Illinois
for my aunt’s 90 th birthday that my sister had passed away in
Houston. While this was not a surprise call, since she had
been sick for the past couple of years, it is still not the call you
want to get. For the past 4-5 years my sister had been pushing
me to get the family history my cousin, my sister, and I had
been working on published. So this past year this became a
priority project and with my sister in and out of the hospital
we worked on the book. Whenever I visited her in the hospital
the first words were, “How’s the book?” Progress was always
met with a smile and a little more pushing. The plan was to
have the book ready for my aunt’s 90 th birthday and the
Tuesday before the birthday I delivered my sister the
completed book and we spent a great afternoon reviewing it.
The next Tuesday, her work was done and the family history
was told.

The next month it was Laurie’s turn to receive that call.
Her sister’s caregiver called and Laurie headed to her sister’s
side and the hospital where she passed away quietly the
following day.

While the loss is always hard, even when you know it is
coming, it is still hard to take. Both of our sisters were older
than us by many years and their health had been bad for the
past several years, so we look at it as a blessing for them.

September was time for me to head out to the N arrow Gauge
Convention which was in North Carolina this year. Headed out
from Texas with another modeler and picked up a couple of
other narrow gaugers along the way visiting areas of interest,
wineries, and model railroads. Great way to spend the week!
We did do a side trip to the Biltmore house in Ashville. What a
house, but no train room. While the convention was great as
always between the clinics and vendor room, there was a problem.
The problem was the model railroad layouts were in 3 states so
the drive time was significant.

Returning from the convention it was time to get my layout
in shape for the Houston layout tours. With Laurie inheriting
her sister’s home, it was decided this would be the last open
house of this layout since we would be moving in the future.
We had a good crowd over the two days and I was asked
over and over if I had regrets in tearing down the layout. The
answer was always no. New layout, and a new challenge,
and hopefully a bigger and better layout. Time to get busy,
needs to be ready for the Narrow Gauge Convention in
Houston 20 15.

The Marker Lamp

Page 3

The Dog Ate My Homework

(And the Dates for the 2012 LRS Convention are June 6 -10, 2012)

The early announcement for the 2012 Gulf Coast
Limited contained the wrong dates. Next year’s convention
will be held the first full weekend in June just as the recent
San Antonio and Lubbock Conventions. The error “E” in
the score book does not go to the Marker Lamp Editor but
was on me. In preparing the article I look at the tiny “Next
Year Calendar” in the back of my business planning calendar.
Let’s just say the first page of the planning notebook for the
2012 LSR now has a full size June 2012 Calendar page with
the dates June 6 through 10 shaded in yellow.

This edition of the Marker Lamp contains articles on the
legacy of the Houston Layout Tours (and why that gives us a
great stable of layouts for the 2012 Convention), the evening

in the park and information on planned events outside the
Convention Hotel.

The theme for the Convention will be “Houston-Where
17 Railroads Meet the Sea”. The slogan was lifted from an
old poster produced by the Houston Chamber of Commerce
in the early 1920’s. Our guest speaker will be Douglas Weiskopf,
Houston historian and author of Rails Around Houston,
published in 2009. Many of the prototype clinics will focus on
the lines that served the upper Gulf Coast and the industries in
the area. 1 will let clinics chairman Tracy Mitchell tell you the
clinician names and topics.

We are pleased to play host to the Lone Star Region in 2012
and look forward to seeing each of you here. — Bob Barnett

Houston’s Layout Legacy

bj Bob Barnett

One of the distinguishing features of model railroading
in Houston has been the annual fall layout tours sponsored by
the San Jacinto Model Railroad Club. To the best of my
knowledge Houston is unique in providing home layout tours
separate from a
convention or train
show. The typical fall
tour now has 60 to 65
layouts open to
visitors, but we started
out small and a long
time ago.

In the Beginning:

Numerous Houston
area layouts had been open for LSR Conventions and the
1957 NMRA National Convention held in Houston prior to
the beginning of the fall tours. According to SJMRRC records
Page 4

(old copies of The Derail )
the first November open
house was hosted by Greg
Johnson at his home over
Thanksgiving weekend in
1971. However, Angie
Caulking told me that Ken
started the November
open houses a year or two
earlier. Knowing Ken’s devotion to open houses, some lasting
through most of the night, I believe it. In 1972 and 1973 Ken
Caulking held open houses in honor of Model Railroading
Month. By 1974 several Houston area layouts were open in
November including Ken, Gil Freitag, Joe (Sarge) Reese, and
the Houston Society of Model Engineers. In 1 976 the first printed
“Time table for November Activities” was assembled by Henry
Tolley and Diane Caulking. You will note that Diane was not yet

Diane Tolley. Up until this time
the notices of the open houses were
given in The Derail and through local
hobby shops.

The November Tour
Expands: In the early 1980’s a
typical November tour included
9 to 12 layouts. The tour guide
sheets were typed by my wife
Beverly on an old Smith-Corona typewriter. There was no spell
check and correcting errors in the directions was a real chore.
The directions to Gordon Bliss’ layout were never quite right as
the Highway Department was reconstructing 1-1 0 and the traffic
patterns were constandy changing. (Some things have not changed
over the last 30 years.) In 1984 Houston hosted the LSR

The Marker Lamp

Chuck Clark

Gordon Bliss

Convention and it was a real
accomplishment to assemble
17 layouts for the tour.

The Big Boost: The
number of layouts available
began to increase dramatically
in 1986 as Bob Dannenbrink
and 1 began assembling the
layout tour list for the 1989
NMRA National to be held in Houston. This increase was due
largely to Bob’s efforts to seek out new layouts that were in
existence but had not been on previous tours. It worked and
in August 1989 the big week
arrived and we proudly
displayed 30 layouts on the
AstroRail’89 Convention
tours plus eight layouts on a
Sunday driving tour. We
expected this to be a peak, but
not so. The number of
available layouts continued to
increase in the early 1990’s.

The “Modern” Era: Mike Cohn brought the tours into the
modern era. Mike took over the job in the fall of 1991 and
kept the tours going for 10 years. Mike used a computer in his
business and placed all of the tour data on disc so it could be
updated yearly. This sounds obvious now, but 20 years ago
very few people had home computers and access to Word or

Word Perfect. The number
of layouts continued to grow
reaching 40 and a few years
later 50. When Mike moved
to San Antonio, Mike Brignac
assumed the tour duties and
published the tour sheets
another 6 years. It was during
this time the tour expanded
from a “November” tour to the “Fall Tour” typically filling
eight weekends from mid October through the first weekend
in December. By 2003 Mike had 93 names in the data base for
layouts that had been open in the last few years.

The “Digital” Era: Byron Spampinato assumed the duties
of layout tour chairman and published the tour for 4 years.

The tour grew still larger and
peaked at 83 layouts a few years
ago. In recent years several new
layouts have been added but
several were lost due to
relocation or deaths of the
owners. With the combined
efforts of Byron and San
Jacinto Club webmaster Jim Lemmond, the tour sheets were
posted on the San Jac’s website starting about four years ago.
This not only allows for wider circulation to area model
railroaders, but allowed updates and last minute changes. The
invitations are extended in August and the tour sheets printed
in late September or early October. That is a long time until the
last weeks of the tour, and conditions can change that could

a cancellation.
Brantley recently
took on the task of
publishing the tour and is
busy putting together the
final touches as this is
written. Craig is using a
new more standardized
format and is posting
“Google Map” style directions on the website each week.

The “Footprint” of the tour: Not only has the number of
layouts grown but the geographic area has grown immensely.
We have had railroads on the tour from as far south as Lake
Jackson, as far southeast as Galveston and Texas City, as far
east as Beaumont and Port Arthur, as far north as Willis, as far
northwest as Bryan-College Station, west to Katy, and extending
to the southwest to Richmond-Rosenberg. We also have
expanded in scales, from Z to Barry Bog’s Gn3 all the way up
to the 1 1/2” scale of the Houston Area Live Steamers at
Zube Park.

You can see many of these layouts in 2012 at the LSR
Convention: Craig Brantley is also chairing the layout tours for
the 2012 LSR Convention in Houston and Jim Lemmond is
the webmaster. We can’t promise 80 layouts but we will promise
a wide variety in scales, eras and layout size. We are also planning
some “stop off’ tours for those driving to and from the
convention. So, mark up your calendar for June 6 through 10,
2012 and plan on seeing some layouts. We’ll see you there.

LADIES ONLY!

Vetticoat junction

Attention NON -RAILS

The 2012 LSR Houston Convention is getting closer.

Have you started your contest entry yet? Remember time passes fast so you’d better keep working on it. As promised,

we’ll have a category for anything you make.

Also we are working on clinics, speakers, a trip, luncheon, Bingo and whatever else it takes to keep you busy.

Don’t be left out of a good time!

The Marker Lamp

Page 5

An Evening in the Park

Bj Bob Barnett

Next year at the 2012 Gulf
Coast Limited convention we invite
you to spend an evening in the park.

We are planning an outing on
Thursday evening to Zube Park,
home of the Houston Area Live
Steamers (HALS). HALS was
established in 1991 and the club is
celebrating its 20 year anniversary
this fall with a Live Steam Meet. A
lot has been accomplished in 20
years with the current track
configuration represents three
distinct phases of construction.

Phase 1 consisted of a loop
completely visible from the Cypress
Creek Station. (Everyone started
out with a Lionel train and a loop of track, right?) .

Phase II added an elongated loop of track cutting through
the edge of the woods to the east and a sharp return curve
dubbed “Dead Man’s Curve” by the members.

Phase III
cuts through the
heart of the
wooded area to the
east and added a
significant amount
of distance (and
time) to the run.
Currently HALS
has about 9,000
feet of track. And
yes, there is a Phase
IV. Much of the grading has been done and the piers for the
four-span bridge have been poured. The forms were fabricated
by LSR member Rick White and the concrete foreman was
former Division 8 Treasurer Peter Bryan. Phase Four will
extend the track deep into the woods to near the eastern
boundary of the Park. We had hoped to have at least half of
Phase IV in service by late this year but the current draught and
heat have slowed construction this summer.

The Club
has three club-
owned engines
and several
privately
owned
locomotives
kept at the
track including
several
steamers. We
are planning to

have steam locomotives
steamed up to display and pull
passenger for the Evening in the
Park. We also have an active
Gauge One group in HALS. If
you are not familiar with Gauge
One, it is Live Steam operating
on G-Scale track. HALS has
run engines on the elevated
Gauge One track ranging from
narrow gauge D&RGW engines
to a UP Big Boy.

So, sign up early for the
Evening in the Park and
Barbeque dinner. We promise a
lot of railroad fun.

Page 6

The Marker Lamp

Arthur Penny
1936-2011

by Trag Mitchell, MMR

The LSR lost a member on September 8, 2011 when
Arthur Penny passed away after a battle with Cancer. Arthur
was a great friend and will be missed by all of us in the Houston
area as well as the Region. 1 got to know Arthur when he
started attending Hands On clinics I was giving for the Division
8. He always was trying to improve his modeling skills and it
showed in his work.

Arthur was a Brit. He had that great British Humor and it
showed whenever he opened his mouth. He loved his adopted
country of America but he never forgot where he came from
either. As you walked up the stairs to his train room on the stair
landing hung a portrait of Winston Churchill.

We knew for some time that Arthur was battling cancer
but he never wanted pity or to stand out because of it. In fact
whenever you asked him how he was doing he would say in
that great British accent of his. . . “Well I’m dying, but I look so
damn good doing it, don’t you think.”

Arthur was also working on his MMR. When 1 met his
son at the service and told him who I was, he said 1 recognize
your name. Dad had Model train paperwork on his desk and
you signed off on some of his accomplishments.

One of the Certificates he got was for Chief dispatcher
and because he was working on it he operated on several layouts
in the Houston area. He was such a delight to be around
during an operating session. On one of these I attended he
was dispatching. We all kidded him that he added real
sophistication to the chatter that goes on the radios with his
high brow accent. His operating on the Houston Layouts got
him asked to go to the out of town operating sessions such as
the Dallas Interchange, Tulsa and Hog Rails. I went with him
on one of these trips to Arkansas. We were “running mates”
on John McBee’s layout. Both of us were not novices but we
weren’t experts either. This made the session so much fun for
both of us. Neither one of us had an ego that day so we were
always willing to take suggestions from the other person. John
came up to us one time and made the comment that he never
had such a team that worked so well together, slow but still
made a good team. We both laughed and went on with our
business.

During the last few months, he would always bring me a
model to critique. The last San Jac meeting before he passed
away he wasn’t there. That was when I knew something was
wrong.

Arthur was born August 1, 1936 in a light industrial area
of East London, England. The early years of his life were
dominated by World War 11 and the blitz in the early 1940’s.
Life during the day was surprisingly normal but most nights
were spent in the family air raid shelter. In 1944 he was
evacuated, together with most of London’s children, to safer
areas in the north of England.

Normal school life took over on his return and at the age
of 1 1 he was fortunate to be accepted into the area’s prestigious
high school. After 5 years the family could not afford any
more schooling and so he went to work full time for a small
London stockbroker and continued his education at evening
classes. Military service was still mandatory and after 2 years
he was drafted into the Royal Air Force where he served in
Egypt and Cyprus. On returning to civilian life he resumed his
old job but only for a year. At that time he started what would
be a long career in the energy industry and commenced more
evening studies which led to his degree.

In 1973 the family then made a major decision to emigrate
to The Netherlands as Arthur was recruited by a Dutch
company. The plan was to live there forever but after 3 years
Arthur was transferred to Houston, for a planned 2 year posting,
to integrate a newly acquired operation. But once again that
was not what God had in mind for the family and Arthur
embarked on his first effort as a consultant. Another two years
passed and circumstances changed again and the family moved
to Tulsa, Oklahoma to a new position with a major pipeline
operator. After seven years yet another move was necessary,
back to Houston and the start of what would be a 25 year
career as a consultant serving energy and industrial clients.

Arthur had many interests in his life outside of his passion
for his work. Sports was always a major part of his life. An
accomplished participant at football (soccer), cricket, squash,
racquetball, bicycle racing, car rallies, and golf, he always enjoyed
participating as much as he enjoyed spectating. He traveled to
play at some of the world’s greatest golf courses and played
regularly right through to his 70’s.

He also had a life long passion for trains, and after retiring
from work, assembled a significant model train layout in their
home that gave him many hours of adventure and enjoyment.
Family and friends were very important and he enjoyed watching
the children at their various activities and sports. His children
and grandchildren enjoyed the many activities and family travels
and will sorely miss the times they had with him. He enjoyed
traveling the world and meeting new people, and cherished his
friendships.

He is survived by his wife of 50 years Jennie, children
Suzanne, Mark (and wife Kim), Amanda and grandchildren
Allyson, Kai, Zachary, and Alexander. The family kindly requests
that donations be sent to either Northwest Assistance Ministries
l www.namonline.org) where he was very involved in their
ministries or the Lance Armstrong Foundation
l www.livestrong.org) . which continues to help fund cancer
research and support cancer victims.

The Marker Lamp

Page 7

Lubbock in the rearview mirror

Photos from the Lubbock Convention

Taken by Shannon, Aaron and Nicholas Stevens & Judith & Loren Neufeld, MMR

Page 8

The Marker Lamp

String Diagrams using Excel

By Jack

My favorite author, Frank Ellison, once wrote that model
railroading was like a theatrical play with tracks as the stage, scenery
and buildings the setting, trains the actors and the timetable the
plot. The simplest way to develop the timetable or plot is to put
all the action on a graph. The prototype railroads also use this
same technique. There are two ways to develop the graph —
paper, pencil and eraser or a computer using a spreadsheet. 1
elected to develop mine on a computer using Excel. In the end, 1
find it easier to make changes and the final product is neater. These
graphs are also called string diagrams.

The diagram has stations on the vertical scale, time on the
horizontal scale and train movements on a diagonal line. The
diagrams are useful for developing a timetable or sequence
schedule for your railroad. They are also a requirement for
obtaining the Chief Dispatcher AP certificate.

Track Distance

The first step is to measure your track distances. We need
the length of each track segment between all yards and stations
on your railroad. I did this by measuring the length of a train
and then using push pins to mark the position of each station
and center of each yard including the staging yard. I began in
staging and ran my measured train to the first point which is
the freight yard. By counting number of train lengths and
measuring the final fraction of a train length, we quickly have
the distance between the first and second points. Repeat this
for all stations on your railroad.

Train Travel Time

The next step is to calculate the travel time between yards
and stations. You will need to pick a fast clock ratio. The ratio
determines how fast your railroad “fast clock” will run
compared to your wrist watch. This ratio can be anything
from 1/1 to 15/1 or higher. The higher the ratio, the longer
your railroad will appear as more time will expire on the fast
clock for the same distance between stations.

The time to switch cars on a model railroad is about the
same as the time required on a prototype railroad. So, if you
do a lot of switching, a low ratio will work better. If you run
a lot of non-stop through trains, a high ratio will work better.
Many people use ratios of 2/1, 3/1 or 4/1 and some 6/1 or
12/1. I use 4/1 on my railroad. My schedule runs from 6:00
am to 6:00 pm and a 4/1 ratio means a 12 hour schedule is
completed in 3 hours of real clock time.

After establishing your clock ratio, calculate the running
time between stations. To do this, establish speed limits for
each train type. For example, a peddler train may operate at
20 mph between stations and a through passenger train may
operate at 40 mph between stations. Slower speeds will make
your main line appear longer. Make a table (Fig 1) showing
train speeds and travel time between stations. The formula to
calculate times (in minutes) is: Time = track length (ft) x scale
ratio (87 for HO) x 60 x clock ratio divided by 5280 x speed
(mph). For example: the time to travel from Galveston to
Houston Freight Yard at 20 mph on my railroad is 22 ft x 87
x 60 x 4 divided by 5280 x 20 = 4.35 minutes. 1 rounded all
times to the nearest minute for my table. Note, the table has

10

Merkel

two parts — the left part begins in Galveston and the right part
begins in Temple.

Times (minutes) Between Towns
Towns 20 mph 30 mph 40 mph 20 mph 30 mph 40 mph
Temple 7 5 4 0 0 0

Caldwell 8 5 4 7 5 4

Brenham 4 3 2 8 5 4

Sealy 6 4 3 4 3 2

Houston P 4 3 2 6 4 3

Houston F 4 3 2 4 3 2

Galveston 0 0 0 4 3 2

Figure 1

Train Spread Sheet

The next step is to set up a spreadsheet (Fig 2) listing stations
and trains.

I have listed my stations
in Column A. Each station
is listed twice so we can use
an arrival time and a
departure time. Galveston
and Temple are in staging
and only need to be listed
once. Column B lists
distance (in feet — MP) along
the railroad. Column C lists
a common time for all
stations. This is required to
plot the stations on the
graph the correct distance apart. Column D lists the schedule
for one train. This is train number 1 6 and is a first class passenger
with a switching stop in Houston. The format for cells
containing time (C3 to D14) is set by clicking on the toolbar:
format/ cells / number/ custom/h:mmAM/PM.

Train 16 leaves Galveston at 6:00 am and travels to Houston
passenger station. It takes 6 minutes per our chart in Fig 1
traveling at an average speed of 30 mph. The 6 minutes is 3
minutes from Galveston to Houston Freight Yard plus another
3 minutes from Houston Freight Yard to Houston Passenger
Station. The average speed takes into account the time to start
the train moving and getting up to speed and slowing for arrival
at the passenger station. Note, we only enter the departing
time at Galveston and the arrival time in Houston. The arrival
time in Houston is 6:06 am. The other entries at Houston freight
yard are not needed, but the #N/A is needed so the line will
plot as a continuous straight line between stations.

It takes 39 min to switch train 16 in Houston. So the
departure time from Houston is 6:45 am. The train continues
non-stop to Temple. Looking at Fig 1, it takes 13 minutes to
travel to Temple at an average speed of 40 mph. So, the
arrival time in Temple is 6:58 am. Note the #N/A entries in
the intermediate stations.

Train Graph

We will now plot this train on a graph. To begin, click on

13

r a i

B L

C 1

D

Town MP

Towns

16

Temple

172

6 00 AM

6 58 AM

Caldwell

135

6 00 AM

*1 IA

Caldwell

135

6 00 AM

*H'A

Brenham

94

6 00 AM

*M'A

Brenham

94

6 00 AM

*!IA

Sealy

72

6 00 AM

*MA

Sealy

72

6 00 AM

*11 A

Houston P

41

5 00 AM

S 45 AM

Houston P

41

6 00 AM

6 06 AM

Houston F

22

6 00 AM

*11 A

Houston F

22

6 00 AM

*H'A

Galveston

0

6 00 AM

6 00 AM

The Marker Lamp

Page 9

the chart icon on the spreadsheet. At Step 1 , click on the X-Y
scatter plot and the lower right sub chart (scatter with data
points connected by lines without markers). Click next.

At step 2, the chart requests data range which is (so far)
=sheetl !$A$1:$D$14 and is in columns. This is standard
spreadsheet format. Note the = is part of the entry. Also in
step 2, click on the series box at the top. This is where we enter
data from the spread sheet for towns and trains. For series 1 ,
we will enter the towns data. For the title use =sheetl!$C$2,
for the X data, use =sheetl!$C$3:$C$14, for the Y data use
=sheetl!$B$3:$B$14. Next, we will enter the data for train 16.
Go to series 2. For the title use =sheetl !$D$2, for the X data,
use = sheetl !$C$3:$D$14, for the Y data use
=sheetl!$B$3:$B$14. Click next.

At step 3, the chart requests several inputs. First is the tide
which for my railroad is Lone Star & Santa Fe RR. Second are
axes. Click value on for X axis and value on for Y axis. Third
is gridlines. Click on for X axis major gridlines only and click
off for Y axis gridlines. Fourth is legend. Click off. Fifth are
data labels. Leave this blank. Click next.

At step 4, the chart requests chart location. Choose as new
sheet. This will give you a chart on a new page.

Now, we need to fix the axes format. First, position cursor
on X axis and double click. This will bring up a X axis format
box. Click on the scale section. This will bring up a box for
values for X axis. Turn off all the automatic boxes. Put in a
value of 0.25 for the minimum. Put in a value of 0.75 for the
maximum. Put in a value of 0.041666666 for the major unit.
Put in a value of 0.020833333 for the minor unit. Put in 0 for
value Y axis crosses at. Click ok. You will note the X axis
values are now 6:00 am to 6:00 pm. These are the times I use
for my timetable. If you want different times — say a 24 hour
time span, enter 0, 1, 0.08333333, 0.04166666 in the four boxes
and you will get a 24 hour X axis.

Now, we need to fix the Y axis. First, position cursor on
Y axis and double click. This will bring up the Y axis format
box. Click on the scale section. This will bring up a box for
values for Y axis. Put the maximum railroad length (172 for
my railroad) in the maximum box. Now go to Chart options
and click off the value of Y axis. Next, position cursor on left
vertical line which will show series “towns”. Right click. This
will bring up a box that has format data series in top line.
Click on this item. This will bring up several boxes. Click on
X error bars. This will bring up another set of boxes. Click on
plus box in display area and put 1 in the fixed value box. Click
OK. You will now see the horizontal lines are set at values that
correspond to the distances between stations.

Next we will add station names and train name. Click on
the plot area and use the corner arrows to shrink the plot area
and move it to the right. This will give you some room on the
left side to add station names. Click on the drawing icon in the
upper menu. This will give you a drawing menu at the bottom.
Click on the text box and move the cursor to where you want
the station name — next to the line for that station. Use 8 point
text size and type in the station name. Do this for each station
name. Click on the text box and move the cursor next to the
beginning point for the train. Type in the train number using 8
point text. I also change the plot area background to white and
the train lines to black. Do this by clicking on the plot area and
Page 10

click on format and change color. Click on the train line and
format and change color.

The left part
of the train
graph
should now
look like

Fig. 3.

Add More Trains F &‘ re3

We can now add more trains. Train 39 on my railroad is a
manifest freight that sets out cars at each station. A local train
later spots these cars at each industry. The train leaves Temple
at 6:00 am and switches at each station and terminates in
Houston Freight Yard. The times are listed in column E in Fig.
4. The times were established in the same manner as train 16.
The spreadsheet now looks like Fig. 4.

To enter this train on the graph, click on the chart icon and go
to step 2 series. Click on add. Enter the data using similar
format as we did for train 16. The graph will now include
train 39. Notice the meet at Brenham. If the meet is not

•£] ML string line article

A I

B

c 1

D |

E |

1

Town MP

2

Towns

16

39

3

Temple

172

6 00 AM

6 58 AM

6 00 AM

4

Caldwell

135

6 00 AM

SNA.

6 05 AM

5

Caldwell

135

5 00 AM

StlA.

6 35 AM

6

Brenham

94

6 00 AM

SNA

6 41 AM

7

Brenham

94

6 00 AM

SNA

7 00 AM

8

Sealy

72

6 00 AM

SNA

7 03 AM

9

Sealy

72

6 00 AM

SNA

7 15 AM

10

Houston P

41

5 00 AM

6 45 AM

SNA

11

Houston P

41

6 00 AM

6 06 AM

SNA

12

Houston F

22

6 00 AM

SNA.

7 22 AM

13

Houston F

22

5 00 AM

SNA .

14

Galveston

0

6 00 AM

6 00 AM

15

Figure 4

The Marker Lamp

correct, adjust the train times for train 39 so that it arrives at
Brenham before train 16. Add the train identification (39 in
text box). The left part of your chart should now look like
Fig. 5.

[* Internal error: Invalid file format. | In-line. WMF *]

You can continue to add trains in the same manner until
your schedule is completed. The complete train graph for my

railroad is shown in Fig. 6.
The hard part of this work
is setting up the original train
graph. It is very easy to add
trains as we did for train 39
— add it to the spreadsheet
and add to the series box at
step 2 on the chart icon. It
is even simpler to change a
train’s schedule — just change
the times in your
spreadsheet and the plot will
be revised.

This chart shows
what should happen on my
railroad. However, things
don’t always happen as
planned. Some trains may
run late. That is why we
6 :oo am 7:00 am 8:00 am 9 00 am have dispatchers.

Figure 5

Lone Star & Sente Fe RR

6 00 AM 700 AM 800 AM 000 AM 1000 AM 1100 AM 1200 PM 100PM 200PM 300PM 400PM 5 00PM 600PM

Figure 6

Caldwell

Sealy

Houston

Union

Staton

Acknowledgement

I originally found this technique on the Yahoo Opsig discussion
group. The string diagram spreadsheet was posted by Robin
Becker from San Diego.

References

Chubb, Bruce - How to operate your model railroad — chap
7 & 8.

Ellison, Frank - Model Railroader - Dec 1964 pg 54 -
Scheduling From Scratch.

Pass Exchange

There seems to be an interest in the Lone Star Region to
bring the Pass Exchange program back to life. Walter Zahn has
decided to work on renewing interest in this program. If you
are interested in participating please send him 2 samples of
your pass and in return you will get a pass and a list of Active
pass exchangers. Walter will review the passes and send a pass
of the quarter that will be displayed in The Marker Tamp.

Please help Walter get this program moving again. Send
you passes to:

Walter Zahn

3309 Point East Drive

Mesquite, Texas 75150-2645

PASS of the Quarter

Gulf & Denver
Railroad Authority

Date I 1 V / '! PASS No: 0103

Q> <rt $

Authorizing Agen^

Main Office
3400 Bryant Irvin Rd.
Fort Worth, TX 76109

www. lmra.org/Acti vity. aspx?pageid=50

The pass if the quarter was sent in by Bob Bray, 3400 Bryant
Road, Fort Worth, Texas 76109. It is a very well done multi
colored pass representing the layout at the Lockheed Martin
Recreation Area.

Company Store Inventory as
of October 15, 2010

All cars sold out.

Other items available

Cloth Region Patches $5.00 each (Only LSR Life — 35 avail.)
Auto/Window Region Decal $ .50 (10 avail.)

N Scale (13 avail.) Nevadun Decals $2.00 per sheet
HO Scale (8 avail.) & N Scale (22 avail.) Daw Cha Southern
Decals $3.00 per sheet

Shipping

Please add $1 .00 for patches and decals

Matthew Latham, Dispatcher
2320 Hickory Leaf Lane
Flower Mound, TX 75022-4945
972-358-6168

E-mail: wnrailway@yahoo.com

The Marker Lamp

Page 11

For the Narrow Minded...

by Duane Richardson, MMK
Photos by Chuck Und, MMK

It’s hard to believe that it’s been 3 years since the last
installment of For the Narrow Minded. Like many of you,
I’ve been working on my trains here and there but not as far
along as I would like. I was giving this some thought the other
day and I realized that maybe 1 had gotten more done in those
in between model building times than I realized. Now, I don’t
know about you but I’m one of those ‘learn by doing’ type of
people. I was really starting to get concerned that I might be
falling behind a little as I hadn’t built anything in a while. I was
greatly surprised that when some time freed up for me to
work on a project that I tried a few ‘new to me’ tricks and they
worked fine. It was stuff that I had seen in clinics or read in
magazines but just hadn’t tried yet.

It was
during some of
this in between
time that I did the
bulk of my
research for a
project I’m
finishing now for
my Prototype
Modeler project.
From a road trip
I have covered in
a previous For the
Narrow Minded
I collected my
pictures of
Chama, NM
taken in the
winter. I began
putting together
my plots and
plans to

scratchbuild the
I yard buildings
and determine
how much space

it would take to do it without looking cramped. It was early
on in this process that I realized I had never modeled snow
before. So I started looking around for different ways to do it.

Over the next few weeks I would roam the internet looking
for answers. There I found several different ways to try and
each was different than the one before. One guy swears by
some spray on stuff you use to decorate your windows at
Christmas time. Flaving my doubts I still had to try it and by
the time I was done I was glad it was all on scrap because I
wasn’t happy with the results. I tried some ground foam ‘snow’
and it doesn’t look too bad at a distance but still just didn’t
have that fluffy snow look. I tried crystals, I tried marble
powder and all of it looks OK but it wasn’t exacdy what I
wanted. Something wasn’t looking right.

I had a couple of ideas I wanted to try from the kitchen
and while shopping at Sam’s one day 1 found Baking Soda in
large bags so 1 bought one to try it out. Now, once you seal it
down it does lose some of the fluffy look but it was, to me,
what I wanted to use. It also had the advantage that I could
buy large amounts of it cheaply. Baking Soda is caustic and can
cause problems with it wanting to rust your models. If this

was to be on a working layout and not a static diorama I
would have kept on looking.

The next issue became the depth of the snow. There was 3
and a half to 4 feet of snow all over the place and that wasn’t
the drifts. Places where the road grader had come along you
had to stand on the tailgate of the truck to see over the top of
it. So... how do I get the snow that deep? I tried doing it in
layers. That didn’t work out so well so 1 decided to use foam
as a filler for the flat spaces and carve the ‘drifts’ out of the
same construction foam I built the model base out of. I cut the
basic shape with a hot wire tool and then used a Surform tool
to shape it.

I used the ground foam snow to lay down a base and fill
in the cracks and then layered on the baking soda on top of
that. I then put down a couple of layers of ‘snow’ and sealed
it with hairspray. This didn’t look bad but it needed that sparkle

Page 12

The Marker Lamp

you get off snow. Again, I played around with some samples
and ended up using some hairspray my wife pointed me to
that they use at dance recitals. This has a very fine glitter in it
and it worked great as a final pass of sealer.

This gave me almost everything 1 needed but one last
detail. 1 needed icicles. I thought that would be easy. It’s just
some clear silicone caulk. . .no big deal, right? Wrong. It took
some playing around and it was the right material but it
took a bit to get the trick down to making them look right.
That stuff sticks somewhat permanendy to just about every
surface I tried, including glass. I found wax paper to be the
key to having a surface you can work it into the shape you
want and still be able to remove it. I put down a blob and
drug it into a line with a toothpick. Then, from that line of
silicone, get the toothpick in there and start twisting so you
end up with a ball of the stuff on the end. Once you have
the ball on the end start dragging that down in a straight
line while continuing to twist the toothpick. This rolls out a
length of the caulk and it tapers itself as the material runs
out on the toothpick. Once dry you can cut it from the
paper and glue it to the model with a little gap filling CA.

Winter trees are the next thing to worry about. I still
have some things to try on that front and as before, I have
a few things to try. Harry Brunk had a good idea in one of
his Up Clear Creek on the Narrow Gauge series in the
Narrow Gauge Gazette. He used the root systems from
some weeds for the tree itself. The fine details in the roots
appear to work really well for a tree without its leaves. I
also want to try using parts from a Cinnamon broom. These
brooms are widely available during the Christmas season
and have some fine branch structure. It will require me glue
a lot of branches on to build out the tree but the results
have the potential to do what I want.

All of this only reinforces my belief that model
railroading is a never ending search for new methods and
new techniques. It helps to keep our hobby interesting.

Until next time. ..keep the boiler full, the fires hot and
the wheels on the rails.

Duane Richardson, MMR

http:/ / www.purgatoryanddevilriver.com

If you sent
an article
it would be
published here!

The Marker Lamp

Page 13

Up the Tracks Events Calendar for the LSR

October 2011

By Bill Dryden

Here is the list of the upcoming events within the LSR of
which 1 am aware. 1 will provide all the information YOU
send me or I can glean from other publications, websites, etc.
for these events. Additional information may be available
through the NMRA Scale Rails and/ or various trade magazines
or various websites. Please forward any and all information
about upcoming events or activities in your area, club, etc. to
me via e-mail at bdrl49@airmail.net. Also, note that all show
times and dates are at the discretion of the sponsoring
organization and are subject to change.

LSR Convention:

Lone Star Region 61th Annual Convention (2012)
Houston, TX

The Lone Star Region NMRA 61 th Annual Convention will be
held in Houston. Check the LSR website.

Come all!! PARTICIPATE!!!

Recurring events and meetings:

LSR Division 3 - Northeast Texas Division - Monthly

Meeting

Garland

Nicholson Memorial Library, 625 Austin St., Garland, TX.
Third Saturday of each month. For more information contact
Jerry Hoverson at jhoverson@tx.rr.com or check the Division
3 Page on the LSR website.

Alamo Model Railroad Engineers Meeting
San Antonio, TX

The Alamo Model Railroad Engineers meets the 2nd Friday
of the month at 7:30 p.m. in the Zucht Building at the Texas
Transportation Museum, 11791 Wetmore Rd., San Antonio,
TX. For more information call Peter Shavney (210) 317-3661
or Gene Turner (210) 355-2777 or visit the web site
www.alamomodelrailroadengineers.com.

Houston Area Live Steamers
Houston, TX Area

LLALS has over 9,000 feet of track for you to enjoy and ride
on most any Saturday of the year. Someone is usually there
every Saturday with special run, operations, waybills/ timetable,
work and fun run days scheduled throughout the year. Our
public run days are the third Saturday of the month March
through November. Come see our 2,500 foot expansion in
Phase 4. Model Railroaders (any scale) are welcome to attend
most any time. Check our web site out at www.hals.org for
schedule of events or e-mail Peter Bryan at peterb@pdq.net
for more information.

North Texas Council of Railroad Clubs Meeting
Irving, TX

The North Texas Council of Railroad Clubs (NTC) meets the
third Tuesday of the month. Visit the website

www.dfwtrainshows.com for more information about the
NTC, its meeting site or member clubs.

Events and Shows:

November

5 * _ g* New Braunfels Museum Railroad Jamboree.

Sat. 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Sun. 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Adults
$6, Ages 5-17 $2. New Braunfels Civic Center, 380 S. Seguin
Ave., New Braunfels, TX. For more information:
JEdmondson@satx.rr.com.

5 * _ g* Texas & Pacific Railroad Museum Annual
Model Train Show and Shopping Extravaganza. Sat. 10:00
a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Sun. 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Adults $5,
Children 12 and Under Free. Marshall Civic Center, Marshall,
TX.

12 * _ i 3 * North Texas Council of Railroad Clubs 26 th
Annual Fort Worth Train Show. Sat. 10:00 a.m. to 5:00
p.m., Sun. 10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Adults $8, Children 12 and
Under Free with adult ticket. Anion G. Carter Exhibits Building,
Will Rogers Memorial Center, 3401 W Lancaster Avenue, Fort
Worth, TX. For more information: www.dfwtrainshows.com.

January 2012

15 th — 16 th North Texas Council of Railroad Clubs 26 th
Annual Dallas Area Train Show. Sat. 10:00 a.m. to 5:00
p.m., Sun. 10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Adults $8, Children 12 and
Under Free with adult ticket. Plano Centre, 2000 East Spring
Creek Parkway, Plano, TX. For more information:
www.dfwtrainshows.com.

February 2012

18 th San Jacinto Model Railroad Club - The

Greater Houston Train Show. Sat. 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Adults $6, Ages 12—18 $1, Children under 12 Free with adult
ticket ($12 maximum per family). Stafford Center, 10505 Cash
Road at Murphy Road (US 59 @ Beltway 8). A list of open
area homes will also be given at the show for layout tours. For
more information: http:/ /sanjac.leoslair.com/resources/2012-
Public-Flyer.pdf.

March 2012

18 th - 19 th New Braunfels Museum Railroad Jamboree.

Sat. 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Sun. 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.. Adults
$6, Ages 5-17 $2. New Braunfels Civic Center, 380 S. Seguin
Ave., New Braunfels, TX. For more information:
Jedmondson@satx.rr.com.

Please consider our deadlines for submittals and
publications to allow adequate lead time to correctly
announce your event

Column submission deadlines are the 15 th of January,
April, July and October ;

Marker Lamp publication is the middle of the following
month.

Page 14

The Marker Lamp

Secretary /Treasurer’s Report

by Tom Browning

For the First Fiscal Quarter of 2011/2012
Beginning Balance 05/01/2011

LSR Checking Account

$2,091.19

Vanguard CD Fund

$34,344.84

Acct Receivable Due 2011 Convention

$1,000.00

Total LSR Net Worth

Not included in Total LSR Net Worth

Funds Held For Division 1 $ 3,400.50

Funds Held For Division 3 $1,450.89

Funds Held For Division 4 $4,255.60

Funds Held For Zahn Donation $600.00*

$37,463.03

LSR Proceeds

Vanguard CD Fund Interest

$4.53

Vanguard Convention Fund Interest

$1.66

Pike Ads

$128.00

Decals

$8.00

Convention 2011 Proceeds

$206.00

Total Proceeds

$348.19

LSR Disbursements

Youth Membership Program

$84.00

Marker Lamp Printing & Mailing

$1,213.29

SecTres Expense and Postage

$32.72

Contest Expense

$430.52

Historian Expense

$29.23

Achievement Program Expense

$39.68

Website Expense

$59.60

Memorial Donation

$99.58

Total Disbursements

$1,988.62

Net Proceeds/ Disbursements

$-1,640.43

Ending Balance 07/31/2011

LSR Checking Accounts Total

$238.57

Vanguard Money Market Accts Total

$35,557.03

Total LSR Net Worth

Not included in Total LSR Net Worth

Funds Held For Division 1 $3,400.50

Funds Held For Division 3 $1 ,450.89

Funds Held For Division 4 $3, 954. 93

Funds Held For Zahn Donation $600.00*

$35,795.60

* These funds are restricted and will become unrestricted at
$200.00 per year to comply with terms of donation.

At the beginning of May 2011 the membership was 1,047
and at the end of July 2011 the membership was 1,035.
Please welcome our new members listed below:

May 2011

Amechi Amanugi, Carrollton, Tx — 3
Misty Lowe, Austin, Tx - 4
Bill McCall, Austin, Tx — 4
Terry Chancellor, Lubbock, Tx — 5
Robert Arrington, San Antonio, Tx - 6
Jodee Himbaugh, San Antonio, Tx — 6
The Marker Lamp

John Himebaugh, San Antonio, Tx - 6
Mary Houzvicka, San Antonio, Tx — 6
Mark Verdi, San Antonio, Tx — 6
Norman Darras, Pasadena, Tx - 8

June 2011

David Peterson, Clyde, Tx - 1
David Hertz, Gretna, La — 2
Raymond Martin, Allen, Tx — 3
Leta Hagens, Lubbock, Tx — 5
Mike Mamlock, Lubbock, Tx — 5
Chantel Michiels, Lubbock, Tx -5
Gino Michiels, Lubbock, Tx — 5
Richard Curilla, Corpus Christi, Tx — 6
Gary Griffin, San Antonio, Tx - 6
Susan Griffin, San Antonio, Tx — 6
Charles Ibaugh, San Antonio, Tx — 6
Lindsay Bodak, Houston, Tx - 8
Ted Davis, Houston, Tx - 8
Claude Foster, Houston, Tx — 8
Cora Mitchell, Houston, Tx — 8
William Robinson, Cypress, Tx - 8
July 2011

Michael Golfs, Houston, Tx — 8

Cowcatcher Division 1

by Chris Atkins

Fmail: chris@railroadermodelers. com
Phone:214-222-1285
Web: http:/ / cotvcatcherdmsion.com

Hi gang, It’s been a great quarter in the Cowcatcher
Division. I hope the cooler weather is finding you all working
on your layouts. I just got back from an operating weekend in
Minnesota where I came to appreciate our mild fall weather.

In September, we had a great presentation by Mike Corley
on Making Operations Fun. Mike reviewed several things they
are doing at the Texas Western to mix it up during their regular
operating sessions.

In October, LSR membership chair Larry Swigert and I
manned the table at the annual LMRA train show in Ft. Worth.
We had a great turnout even though the Houston area was also
having a train show the same weekend. We recruited nine new
members to the LSR - 8 in Division 1 and 1 in Division 3!

We’ll have another chance to grow our membership at the
upcoming Ft. Worth Holiday Train Show on Nov. 12-13. Please
come by the table and help out if you can. It is always fun to
meet other model railroaders and talk trains. The same is true
of the Plano show in January. We will need people to present
clinics in Plano.

Just like years past, both of these shows are important to
the division because as a member of the North Texas Council
of Railroad Clubs, we have a financial interest in the success of
the shows. Beyond that, local train shows are an excellent
opportunity to meet new modelers and share the benefits of
joining the NMRA. We have a booth at both shows and last
year, we had a lot of success recruiting new LSR members at

Page 15

the Plano show. You can get the latest information about the
Ft. Worth and Plano train shows at http:/ / facebook.com/
dfwtrainshows.

The next meeting of the Cowcatcher Division will be Nov.
19 th from 10AM until noon in room 1 of the Lockheed Martin
Recreation Area Administration Building at 3400 Bryant-Irvin
Blvd., Ft. Worth, TX 76019. The clinic will be focused on people
new to the hobby - which many of the new members are. We
will also have our usual popular vote model contest, so bring
your favorite model. This time, bring something that you think
is something a beginner could accomplish.

1 hope to see you all at the next meeting. If you have any
questions or suggestions, you can contact me at
chris@railroadmodelers.com. More information can be found
at http:/ / cowcatcherdivision.com

This has been a very fast and furious quarter. My Mother-
in-law passed away at the age of 97. Cora was a remarkable
lady and will be missed by my wife, Charlotte, and me. We are
now in the process of dispensing her worldly possessions which
have been stored in my garage and layout room for the last
two years. We can now actually see the garage floor and
occasional portions of the track in the layout room. My restored
1950 Chevy pickup is now free to drive out of the garage.
Soon the trains will run once again.

The MidSouth Model Railroad Club of Baton Rouge, LA,
has approached the Crescent City Model Railroad Club in
Metairie, LA, with an offer of assistance. If you remember, in
one of the past issues of The Marker Tamp 1 mentioned that
the CCMRC had a two-fold problem, an older group of
modelers and a need to complete their DCC project. More
than half of the MidSouth members have volunteered to spend
a Saturday assisting in the rewiring of the CCMRC. More to

follow once arrangements are made Isn’t this a great way

to run a railroad.

Lou Shoultz had another operating session at his layout in
Covington, LA, in October. He is still running steam
locomotives native to his beloved C & O. Those huge 2-6-6-
6’s at both ends of the coal trains are something to see (and
hear). I ran a trainload of empty coal cars from one end of
Lou’s huge layout to the other. Having no priority at all, the trip
took about an hour. What a pleasant way to see a layout.

Got to see Walter Rieger’s layout during the trip to Covington,
LA. He has made a lot of progress in modeling “The Rathole”
portion of the C & O. Walter’s layout, when completed, will be
30’X60’, and as it is part of his home, it’s heated and cooled. Next
issue will provide a more detailed look at this layout as some of
Walter’s methods are rather unique.

Well folks, that’s about it for now. Our next article will

complete our journey to New Orleans and Covington and
their model railroads and modelers. As we say down here,
until we meet again “Laissez les bon ton rouler!” — “Let the
good times roll!”

&

Trinity River Division 3

ji by Jerty Hoverson, MMR
Wj ' Email: jhoverson@tx. rr. com
Yflj Ehone: 972-540-5315

I can’t believe it’s time to do another Marker Tamp report!
Where does the time go? You know, the older I get (we won’t
go there) the quicker time seems to go by. Before you know it,
it will be time for the next convention.

We continue to have great participation at our monthly
meetings and everyone is enjoying themselves. Here’s what’s
been happin’ since my last report;

July — We did a recapped the CaprockXpress for those
that didn’t get to go and the REALLY BIG news is that the
Trinity River Division had an OUTSTANDING showing in
the contest room at the convention. I wouldn’t call it a sweep
but it was close. My hat’s off to you guys! Here’s a listing:

Cliff White — 1 st place Diesels

Ben White — 2 nd place Dioramas

Larry Swigert - 1 st place Caboose; 1 st , 2 nd , & 3 rd place
MOW; “Novice Best in Show”; “Participation Award”; “Bob
Clark Award”

David Davis - 2 nd place Caboose; “best kit built”

Mike Jobe — 1 st place Off Line Structures; 1 st place On
Line Structures; “Best in Show”

Plus there were several other entries that while they didn’t
place they DID MERIT. Oh yea, we also presented a couple
of so-so (just kidding) clinics that were done at the convention.
Mike Jobe did his “scratch built structures” & I did my “junk
yard cars”.

August — The awards continued in August with Tom Stocks
having his 2 scratch built Thrall flatcars judged. This was a first for
him and what a job he did on them, not only did they merit but
each scored well over 100 points. Not bad for a first time scratch
builder, huh? We also had a special presentation for Tom Browning.

While he received his
MMR at the Lubbock
Convention we thought
it only right to recognize
him at the division level
since he’s been such an
integral part of it.

So congratulations
Tom on MMR #455. We then had a hands on clinic where we
prepared small parts for molding and then made rubber molds
of them.

Sept — The molding & casting of parts continued this
month and we made parts from the molds we made the
previous month. The standard reaction I got from everyone
was “dang that came out better than I thought it would.” The

Page 16

The Marker Lamp

awards program continued to pick up steam (pun intended)
this month. We had 3, count ‘em 3, Golden Spike awards to
hand out, Jeff Liedl, Leonard Siemantel, and Dave Griffith.
The challenge was laid down, “who’s next” and 1 know we’ve
got at least one more for October. That’s more than the rest
of the NMRA combined.

So, if you like what you see, come on out and join us! We
meet at the North branch of the Garland Library located at
3845 N. Garland. We still meet on the third Saturday of every
month, doors open at 1 0:00 and we get started as soon as we
can get the room setup. Keep watching for the email reminders
1 send out with the upcoming agenda a week or two prior to
the meeting. If you are not getting this email notification I
don’t have your current email address. Please send your
information to me at jhoverson@tx.rr.com so I can include
you and you can join us for all the fun!

Take care all and keep “working on the railroad” but most
of all get involved with the division and have some railroading
FUN!

Cen-Tex Division 4

by Jack Merkel
Email: ElmerMerk@aol.com
Phone:512-355-3289

The wildfires in Bastrop and Austin were a major event in
September. Fortunately, to the best of my knowledge, all of
our members and other model railroaders escaped any major
damage. Flowever, there were several close calls.

We had a Division meeting on Sept 1 0 at the Round Rock
Library. David Peterson gave a presentation on the Trainz
software. This software has amazing graphics. You can create
a complete virtual railroad including scenery, structures, and
rolling stock. You can then hold operating sessions with multiple
trains running simultaneously. It is also possible to have multiple
operators. We had our show and tell session with several items
shown. After the social time, the winners of the Kings Hobby
Shop gift certificates were picked during the Deal or Duds
session. We then toured Rod Reames’s Western and Southern
RR. Rod’s railroad is progressing very well with the potential
of future operating sessions. Dick Sowash has done some
excellent work on various structures on this railroad.

The NMRA/LSR was represented at the Centra-Mod Train
Show in Temple in September. We signed up four new members:
Paul Jones, Kenneth Martin, Michael Ellis, and Barry Gates.

We will also be present at the Great Train Expo at the
Austin Convention Center on October 15 & 16. We will again
be present at the Austin Model Railroad Jamboree which is
held at the First United Methodist Church in Round Rock on
October 29. This show also has layout tours.

Our next Division meeting will be on Saturday December
3 at the Round Rock Library beginning at 9: 1 5 am. The library
is located at 216 E. Main St. in Round Rock. On 1-35, exit at
RR 620 (Exit 252B) and proceed East on RR 620 for a few
blocks to the intersection with Main St. and continue East on

Main St. for another block and half to the library. David and
Sammy Nicastro will present a clinic tided “17 ways not to
make signals — and 1 that works pretty well”. We will have
our normal show and tell table, social time and Deal or Duds.

We do all communications about our Division 4 meetings
via email. If you are not receiving emails about our Division
meetings, that means I do not have a valid email address for
you. Please send you email address to Elmermerk@aol.com

November is National Model Railroad month. I always
invite my neighbors to an open house on my railroad every
year. 1 do this as part of the layout tour program conducted
by the Austin Model Railroad Jamboree. You never know
where you may find a future model railroader — or future
NMRA/LSR member.

We stopped in Silverton, CO during our summer trip this
year during the week of the train festival. I spent some time
watching a crew work on a steam locomotive replacing a bolt
on the equalizer which was a major job. I also managed to get
a one hour ride on a motor car while they were in town. The
Galloping Goose and the Eureka and Pacific wood burning
locomotive were also in town along with the usual Durango
and Silverton trains. It was a busy and enjoyable week there.

On the operating front, Chuck Ellis and David Nicastro are
gearing up for operating sessions this fall. David Barrow, Pete
Guy, Phil Sharpneck and I have regular operating sessions also.

Until next time, try an operating session. You will like it!

Division 5

by Dave Eamberts
Email: DavidWD1944@aol.com
Phone:806-792-7244

Every fall the club has an ice cream social - this October
being no exception. Those of you who came to Lubbock for
the convention may recall Allan Hagens’ beautiful outdoor G
scale garden layout. This was the location of the ice cream
social. The ice cream must have been exceptional as two new
members joined the club that night.

The 23rd Annual National Cowboy Symposium &
Celebration (NCSC) was held September 8-11, 2011, at the
Lubbock Memorial Civic Center in Lubbock, Texas. The
purpose remains to celebrate, preserve, and pass along our
American Western heritage and cowboy culture for those who
know and love it, and for those who have never known it
before to learn from and enjoy it as well. The event schedule
includes entertainers, poetry and storytelling, western writers,
film and movie seminars, a Youth Wild West Day, horse-
handling demonstrations, a horse-themed parade, Native
American Indian activities and presentations, the ever-popular
chuck wagon Cook-off, and exhibits of Western artworks and
merchandise. Every year the Lubbock Model Railroad Club
is invited to attend and set up our modules. We always take
along a stack of our club’s business cards to pass out.

I am finishing up the convention reports and will have
them to Bill McPherson soon.

The Marker Lamp

Page 17

Division 6

by Tom Crosthivait
Tmail: t. crosthn>ait@sbcglobal. net
Phone:210-647-3261

It almost rained in south Texas last week and we finally
have had a couple of days below 100 degrees. I hope that
everyone has survived one of the worst summers on record.
Alamo Model Railroad Engineers (AMRE) has just completed
their fall show and jamboree. As with all railroad jamboree
activity in San Antonio, it was held at the Live Oak Civic Center.
A tree making clinic was held at HobbyTown USA and
sponsored by San Antonio NTrack. The folks at SANTRAK
continue to take advantage of the dedicated room for small
clinics offered by HobbyTown. Check with the store manager
for the schedule of events.

San Antonio Model Railroad Association (SAMRA) is
progressing with the work on the club layout, The San Antonio
and Northern Railroad. Four groups of members are currently
working on scenery and another group of two is replacing
older flex-track and turnouts. The standards require all turnouts
to be DCC friendly.

SAMRA hosts two operating sessions each month. Special
OP sessions are held on holidays. Labor Day saw about 12 people
move 1 6 trains across the layout. Thursday evenings and Sunday
afternoons of each week are for “Fun Runs” at SAMRA.

There is another active group at SAMRA that is not talked
about much. The modular special interest group has a large layout
open on the weekends in the Wonderland of Americas Mall located
at Loop 410 and IH-10 in the northwest part of the city.

Between the AMRE layout at Texas Transportation
Museum, SAMRA’s layout in the Bob Clarke Rail Heritage
Center and SAMRA’s modular SIG at the mall, there are plenty
of opportunities for San Antonio visitors to see model
railroading in action.

With the cooler weather finally upon us, I hope that all of
you can get back into the train room and complete a couple
of the projects that hold down your work bench.

Division 7

by Don Yimmell
TLmail: elf4kcs@mac.com
Phone:318-798-7718

Hello again from dry North Louisiana, sure could use some
rain around here.

Upcoming events first off;

All the folks in South Texas get ready for a visit from the Man
in Red! The KCS’ Holiday Express will be visiting the macaroni
line this year! Dates and locations are:

Friday Nov 25* — Kendleton, KCS Intermodal Shipper Facility
Saturday-26* El Campo, Evans Park
Sunday — 27* Victoria, Highway 59 at Burroughsville Rd.

Monday — 29* Edna, Wells Street

Tuesday, Dec 6*- Texarkana, KCS Yard, 1000 West 7* Street
That is all for Texas this year, now Louisiana will get it’s fair
share this year, we will be going down the old L&A route.
Thursday, Dec T'Pineville, Melrose Street
Friday, Dec 2 nd Baton Rouge, 1401 Foss Street
Saturday, Dec 3 rd LaPlace, Hemlock Street
Sunday, Dec 4* Gonzales, East Ascension Street
Monday, Dec 5* Shreveport, Festival Plaza

All the other stops are in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri,
Kansas and Illinois, a bit out of the LSR. They are making 25
stops in 27 days-Kansas City will get a whole weekend-
Corporate HQ! Bit of a trip to say the least. If you are in the
neighborhood, stop by and say hello to your friendly Elves!

The ArkLaTex crew just returned from the LMSR’s Annual
Train Show, we had a great time, despite the rain on Sunday, a
stuck RV, among a few other issues. Bob and his folks did
their usual great job, good attendance, and I know Chris and
Larry did recruit a couple new members. All in all, a fun show!

If you have read the “Cowcatcher”, you will know that
the Sue Lines are up and running again, I understand they will
be visiting a couple of Texas roads this month, have fun!

I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy
New Year, sort of strange saying this in Mid- October, but we
do have a deadline.

Take Care and Play Trains!

Texas Gulf Division 8

by Ray Byer

Tmail: raybyer@yahoo.com
Phone: 713-472-4599

Will cool weather is here again, I hope you made Ok
through the summer time heat. Division 8 has been busy this
quarter. Finished up its monthly clinics for the year. We also
had the annual business meeting and picnic at Zube Park thanks
again to HALS and it was well attended. This year we served
cold cut and the memberships brought side dishes. The dry
Texas summer and burn ban put a stop to the deep fried turkeys
(better luck next year).

The Houston Railway Museum had its Big Texas Train show.
Your Division 8 Director was there along with the LSR Membership
co-chairman, Mike Jobe. We didn’t have much luck in signing up
new member but we did have some say they would think about
it. So if you know of some people you think may wish to join.
Sign them up and show them all of the fun.

The Division 8 membership is staying around 270 in the
division. If you are a current member thank you for your support.
If you are a new member, I want to welcome you to the NMRA
and your Division 8. If you need help please e-mail me.

Next year your Division 8 is hosting the LSR Region
convention. Hope to see there.

Page 18

The Marker Lamp

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